Breaking Point
by The Nevermore Raven
Summary: My first life was over. Now my life began as a laboratory rat. I hated my promise I initially wanted to keep. I wanted life to end as I was tortured and driven to my breaking point.
1. Deception

**Breaking Point**

Chapter 1

_Deception_

After I was informed upon my promise, I was taken back to my cave of darkness and locked away. Testing would begin. I was somewhat relieved when the scientists provided me with plenty of food and water, but that was for the following experiments. I was taken to a room and placed on a vital signs monitor. The room looked the same as your average hospital room. White walls, tile floors, people running about in laboratory coats, carts of medical things being taken about, it was all there. Unfortunately, their concern was not my well-being. They parched me and noted my health as I was dehydrated. My health declined, of course, but it declined less drastically than the health of anyone else. That is what my designers gave me. I already started from a very healthy person, but they decided to enhance me even more.

I hated the test for water even more than the cruel test of famine. Water is even more crucial to good health than food is. Food provides the body with energy, materials, buttered mashed potatoes and doughnuts. Water, however, is direly needed. Water is the solvent of the body. Food consumption, digestion, absorption; all of these need water. Water carries blood. Metabolism speeds up with water. Water fills cells. Water dissolves ions. Water helps remove waste. The body is three-fourths, or 75 percent water! This crucial component was taken from me, and I remember my barbaric urge to drink anything I could.

I eventually wanted to drink my own blood, but I knew that drawing my own blood would make me loose water more than I would gain. Drawing my own blood would cause pain. Finally, the water I would get from my own blood would return to where it started. Besides, absorbing the blood would take more energy. I urinated less and less. My body is set up to endure water loss. I urinate less than the average person, but the same rules apply for me that do for all. Less water in the body means the less clear urine is. My urine was sampled every time I went, and every time I went, the scientists would make me exercise. My urine started nearly clear. Then it became more yellow, and then it was dark yellow. I soon had small volumes of urine that were a filthy brownish yellow color. Most other people would have yellow urine. They would lose more water.

Two more tests of this nature would follow; a test without food but with water, and a test of no food or water. My 'food' was not cake, ice cream and salad. My 'food' was a tan block that had all of the nutrients I needed. All of the vitamins and minerals were in it. It tasted bland, like flour. The 'food' was a dried powdered mixture of such and such. I was not fond of the block, but I needed it to live.

I could have let my anger out then, but I wanted to help Grandpa. All I knew was that he would use the ARK to destroy mankind. I was loosely monitored, so I could escape to find Professor Gerald. There he showed me what was in the nose of the colony. On this hemisphere, the middle of the flat side had a nose. The nose was just a conical spire that had something inside of it. At the bottom of the nose is a weapon that uses Chaos Crystals to harness energy. With all seven of the Crystals, the weapon would be capable of fragmenting an entire planet. Scientists know that the pieces would collect together again, but the purpose is not the destruction of the planet, but the destruction of the biosphere. Destroying a planet completely is practically impossible.

If the weapon was destroyed or disabled, Gerald would program the colony to collide with the planet. The only way I knew of would be simple impact. The collision of the ARK into the planet would be equal to the strike of a meteor nine kilometers wide. It would leave a crater 322 kilometers across. The impact would cause literally millions of deaths and the dust from the impact would starve many more by darkening the planet in nuclear winter. The Biolizard would attach itself to the nose of the colony and use its own energy to propel the colony forward and into the Earth.


	2. Heat Stroke

**Breaking Point**

Chapter 2

_Heat Stroke_

The torture I despised the most of all was the series of tests for temperature toleration. I was restored to near full health after I had endured starvation. The government paid much for my creation and design, and it wanted results. I was not to escape yet; Grandpa was not finished programming the colony for what he called Armageddon. I had to endure more barbarous treatment of my captors. I could not attack my captors then, for if I rebelled it could expose Gerald's plans...

* * *

I was trapped in my cave again. I was left there in the gloom for several days, buy I could afford to wait. I had developed a copious amount of patience after enduring so many traumas. Out of nowhere, five scientists came for me. The opened door in the gloom was surprising, for I was in darkness for days on end. The scientists walked up to me warily as I stared at them with my carmine orbs. I did not speak; I simply let them lead me where they wished. I followed a team of men in lab coats out of my pit. The halls were no more encouraging than my empty room. I was welcomed by dim hallways of concrete floors and walls of stone, numerous doors of reinforced metal, and the occasional weak yellowed flickering of a light bulb.

The doors concealed nothing more than other empty rooms, the rooms often had prisoners that either were starved to death or long gone. One open door had a dried, crusted body with fat flies hovering over its dry and stale flesh. Occasionally, I could hear a scream of a fellow prisoner or the demented laughter of a person that lost all rational sanity. The scientists always were quick to get away from the deploring asylum. I hated the place far more than they could ever dream! I was lead to a door that had a stairwell, and they lead only one way; up. We climbed equally bleak stairs and ascended fifteen more floors, nearing the surface that I believed I would never see again.

Above the fifteen floors of prison, the stairwell became different. Instead of flickering dim lights, there were many bright white lights. The floor of damp concrete was replaced with floors of beige tile, and the walls of cinder blocks were replaced with blank white surfaces of drywall. The change in atmosphere did not lift my heavy heart. Nothing could. After crawling up twenty more flights of stairs, we wandered down numerous hallways and nearby rooms to a place I could not recall as familiar. I was released in an open room with harsh sunlight. My eyes screamed, burned from the sun's glare. The room was surrounded by a short stone wall and rested against a cliff of rock that was sanded smooth. I was high above a steamy and hot jungle. Although I could escape the room, I could not escape the island. The island was one of many that had many plants, trees, shrubs and beaches, and vast, endless sea.

I could have ended my life, flung myself over the edge and plummeted to my death, but I had a promise to fulfill. I hated the promise. I wanted to die! I was locked out at the room, and I sat there to wait. It was only the morning, judging by the height of the sun, but I was to be baked alive. My black fur quickly became warm from the sun, and my breath became slow as I felt weight of heat settle on my chest. I curled up in a corner and lost myself in the heat. I was to be there all day. I sighed and waited. The sun sat motionless, frozen in place. I waited. Far below, a flock of birds flew out of the thick carpet of green and flew into the sky. I hated the birds. The damn birds could fly, and I was trapped in a sunroom! No matter, I still had a promise to keep.

The sun got a bit higher in the sky, and it also grew hotter. The hottest part of the day was still to come. I am designed for heat endurance, and also for water conservation. That means that I sweat very little. Waiting. Waiting. Waiting. I cursed the birds that I once loved years before. Wait. Wait. Wait. My mind was burning. My body was already numb from sitting still for so long. _This will be a long day._ I rubbed my eyebrows. My breathing was harder to do by the minute as my chest stiffened under the heat. I could hear, but barely, the crashing of waves against the shore. The waves were soothing, but their murmur was not enough to stop the heat...

Breathing was heavy and required effort. My lungs toiled to keep me alive. I took deep breaths of hot air and tried to calm myself. _Calm down. I am calming down, and I will be fine. I am fine._ My pelt was no longer warm, it was hot. _Hot._ I tried to think about more pleasant things, like eating ice cream and splashing ice over my face. My skin still was dry. I am a water conservationist by trade. _I still have hours to go..._ I have been out in the heat for five hours, judging by the sun. My black fur is unbearable. I was finally sweating as my heart felt burdened by the intense heat. I opened my mouth, letting my tongue hang out in a vain effort to cool down. _Too hot..._ My face was flushed and red as my mind started to ache. _It's too hot! Too hot! _I struggled to stand and, leaning against the building for support, emptied myself over the short stone wall. I plopped back down and waited.

The distant ocean and jungle were shimmering in the heat. My fur was dripping wet. I was struggling to breathe. _IT'S HOT. _My breathing was rasping and my mouth was dry. My tongue felt like sandpaper. My saliva was evaporating faster than it was being produced! My body felt very heavy under the heat and sticky weather. I moaned in turmoil and I could barely move. The heat was suffocating me. My heart was racing to keep pace with my efforts. _I can't breathe._ The hottest part of the day was here, but my patience and strength was being whittled away as I continued to sweat. My breathing was shaky and unsteady. My muscles twitched as I was losing control of my body. My mind was at the edge of delirium as I coughed. _TOO HOT!!_ I could not stand it any longer and passed out...


	3. Subzero

**Breaking Point**

Chapter 3

_Subzero_

For many years I was unaware of the temperatures the sadistic researchers burned me with. In a report that I found later, over thirty years later, I found my answer. 45 degrees Celsius! That is 113 degrees Fahrenheit! In 100% humidity!! It felt like it was, according to the report, 50C/122F! My body temperature was at 42C/107F far above my average of 37C/99.5F. My temperature was high enough to land me in an emergency room! What happens to the report is for you to know much later. The next test would be a test of cold temperatures.

After I passed out from severe overheating, I can only recall waking up in a hospital-like patient room. A scientist watched me intently as he scribbled notes. A spark of anger was aroused in my heart as I glanced at him. He handed me a large bottle of cold water, and my face lit up at the sight. "Thank you," I said gratefully and proceeded to chug the water into my thirsty mouth. The researcher seemed surprised, as I rarely if ever talked to any of my captors. I stopped halfway through the bottle, deciding to wait and find out if that was enough. The water tasted almost sweet whenever I was parched. I was once again returned to my cave for three more days. As I waited in something associating with my own name, I concluded that next was the test for cold...

How correct my conclusion was! In the end of that period, I was taken to a different stairwell from the main one. These stairs were at the end of the prison, and behind a secured door. The door opened and the stairs went even deeper into the Earth. I never knew of such a place before, but I do now. The stairwell was lined with cold, bluish steel, and we descended into the depths. A second complex of laboratories was stowed away down here. In those labs my next round of torture awaited. My new prison was called the Icebox by the scientists, which was easier to remember than its official name: Cryostat Extreme Low Temperature Chamber. Same coldness is implied anyway.

The Icebox had more capabilities than just getting colder than hell and staying there, it also could have gusts of wind, and even spray water. This fridge had wind chill and rain to go with it! I was led to a medium sized room filled with computers and sensory equipment, thermometers, Dewar flasks, (thermos bottles are their more familiar name) and researchers running about. The focus of the Icebox was a multitude of things. Cryopreservation was on top of the list; even now scientists fail to effectively freeze large amounts of tissue, yet alone entire organisms! The formation of ice crystals is uneven, so crystals rupture the intricate machinery of the cells it is supposedly preserving. The colloid suspension we commonly call blood is the greatest challenge. Blood is kept at 3C, just above freezing. The second goal was to design effective thermal insulation materials, be they natural, synthetic, strait from the field, or processed. The third goal was designing weapons that could endure the cold temperatures, especially temperatures below -20C/-4F.

Behind a solid steel door that was two meters wide, the Icebox waited. _Here I go..._ The door opened slowly, and behind it was a second door identical to it, like an airlock. I stopped in the airlock and technicians pinned several wires to my head and chest. A needle was pricked in my arm. The researchers would measure my pulse, blood pressure, temperature, core temperature, blood oxygen levels, brain waves, skin electrical resistance, and my skin as it reacted, for example, with goose bumps. These scientists were quite conscientious. I was more than used to having needles put in my arms, but this needle was large, as it was meant to inject adrenaline in my body in case I was too cold for the scientist's liking, not my own. I stared at the door, and could feel bits of tape clinging to my head and chest.

Soon the door out closed, shutting out light from outside the room. Several windows were in the lab to peer into the Icebox. The second door opened, causing my fur to slightly stiffen as I walked reluctantly into the cold. I would be frozen alive for hours on end also, forget just being baked alive. The air was cold, but not to a degree I found discomforting. I once again found a corner and sat there to wait. The steel of the corner caused me to jump at first. _Damn that is cold!_ I sat back down and time dragged on. The temperature stayed constant at first, to see how I would react in that given temperature.

I felt cramped already, and the needle in my arm was not helping very much! My thick black fur is the best defense I have against cold. I have quills on my back to keep my back warm and a mass of quills on my head to keep it warm. I even have a white tuft of fluff on my heart to keep my chest warm. Now that I know Sonic, I can only wonder how he would cope with this chill. He only has short fuzz on his arms and chest. The spot I sat on was slowly getting warmer, so I waited more. The icebox was dark, nearly pitch black, save for a red light above the airlock. My skin tightened slightly in order to fluff my quills up and keep me warm. I was not completely fluffed up yet. I still can fluff up, and I can start shivering, and as a last resort, curl up in a ball, covering my body with quills and putting my body in a smaller area.

The door briefly opened and two others walked into the chamber, also stuck with wires. One was a human wearing a heavy coat and a deerstalker hat. His coat was open, and he took his hat off. The second one was another hedgehog. I guess they were there to be compared to me. The human was white, with blue eyes and brown hair. The hedgehog was brown with brown eyes; typical. The human nodded to me and I grinned back. The human spoke with a Russian accent. "Hi. I am Ivan Sokolov." "Nice to meet you, Ivan. I am Shadow Hedgehog. What are you doing here?" "Oh, you see I am here on a college field trip. The scientists paid me money to be part of an experiment." "Right. I doubt you are cold, judging by were you are from," I replied. "No. This is late spring weather! This is fine for me!" Ivan took his coat off, laying it at his feet as the other hedgehog approached. "Cool in here. I like it. I am Isaac Hedgehog." "Hello. I am Shadow Hedgehog. Why are you here?" Isaac shrugged. "I am in between jobs, and I need something to tie me over. I could use the money right now. Why are you here, Shadow?" I paused. _What should I say?_ "Just here for some cash, you know," I lied.

The temperature was getting colder by the minute. The others sat a meter away from me. _I never knew I was designed to endure cold,_ I thought quietly. "Ivan?" "Dah," Ivan responded. "Have you ever been through a -50C winter?" I asked. -50 degrees, I have heard, is very cold. If some slob was to spit, their spit would freeze by the time it hit the ground! "Dah! Been through -55 before!" Ivan boasted. _It is getting colder. _My quills and fluff bristled a little more. Isaac had his fur fully fluffed. Ivan put his coat on, leaving it unzipped. "Feels like it is about -5C," Ivan stated. We waited more. Ivan had zipped his coat partway. Isaac was the same. I was fully fluffed, and it kept me warm. "It is now about... -20C, a bit chilly," Ivan said. His coat was fully zipped. Isaac was faintly shivering. "How are you going, Shadow?" I looked into Ivan's eyes. "I am fine. Not really warm, but I am fine." One hour passed. Isaac now was shivering a lot. I was slightly cold. Sitting still in cold is a lot colder than it is while working. The body produces much less heat. A wind started to pick up. Isaac curled up. I was shivering slightly. Ivan put his cap on. "This is getting... familiar. Back home, it feels like it is -60 when wind blows!" "O-oh. W-what is the c-coldest you ev-ever felt?" "When it is -55 and the wind is fast, it feels like -65. Freezing cold!" We waited. Isaac was shaking uncontrollably and curled up. Ivan pulled the flaps on his cap down. I was shivering a lot.

A speaker from the room ordered Isaac to leave. "Just you and me," Ivan said. "You are really good with cold." "I know. I am fluffier than Isaac is," I replied. Ivan chuckled. The temperature dropped again. I was shivering uncontrollably. Ivan was fully bundled up and shivering. "This is home! Feels like it is -40C." The air grew colder still. My fingers and feet were numb. I curled up, and my shivering was less intense. The wind became faster. A spray of sleet rained down on us. I briefly peeked out of my curled up body at Ivan. "Cold!" He said simply. He was shivering a lot. I curled back up as I shivered more. Curling up puts my head and chest in the center of my position, focusing my heat more. I was tempted to heat myself up with Chaos, but that would ruin the experiment. I was shivering uncontrollably and curled up, as warm as I could get. I could hear Ivan's teeth rattle. "F-f-feel-l l-l-li-ke -55C/-68F! C-C-C-COLD!" Lucky for Ivan, they treated him for what he was, a person. I however, was not treated as a person. After he left, I could only shiver away and wait...

I could feel heat leave my body. _Cold!! It is so cold! _My arms and legs were numb. Moisture from my breath was freezing onto my quills. I was beginning to lose focus and drifted into and out of sleep. For one last time I woke up. I went to sleep again, and the sleeping saved my life. I was hibernating... This was what the scientists wanted to see. They stopped the wind and sleet to pull me out. I nearly got frostbite! I could have lost my fingers and toes! I hated the scientists. I hated most the individual in charge of my torture, regardless of who the bastard was. If he was** even some person **such as** Brad Pitt **I would have** gladly burned him... alive!** One of the most painful deaths possible is burning to death.

After the GUN organization was finished prodding me, after Grandfather was finished with programming the ARK, and after the colonel was done forcing me to have sex with him, I was placed in a glass tube and frozen. I remember it well. They washed me and sealed the capsule. I was bare at all times, but before I was placed in the capsule, the captors dressed me up with gloves and shoes that Gerald himself designed for me. I was clean, so my skin and fur felt nice, but I was thirsty. The final thing I remember is a humming noise and that I was getting much colder. I thought I was going to be frozen to death. My body numbed and I saw warm fog float from my mouth. _Well, this is the end. _I closed my eyes and waited. I fell asleep with one thought in my mind.

_I have been abused, broken, tortured, and raped. My family is gone. My new friends were killed in cold blood. I am being starved to the point of death. Even when my mind wants retribution, I ask this as I am on the brink of tears._ Tears rolled on my cheeks and froze in place._ Why am I here?_

* * *

_A.N. For those of you who wish to know why Shadow has been raped, it is because I see him as pure. I want him to be as pure as I can possibly make him be. The more pure and strong the heart is, the greater the burden needed to crush it. He will overcome terrible odds in the future. "The greater the struggle, the more glorious the triumph!"_

_The End_


End file.
